Sprinting and Naruto Ramen
by CaffineFreekar
Summary: Seeing his new Jutsu did not scare her. But the hilarity of it all can be blamed on some Naruto Ramen. MinatoxKushina. Rated T for some language. Somewhat related to Sealate Warpein.


No.

She wasn't afraid.

She was _NEVER_ afraid of _anything_.

Uzumaki Kushina was the most courageous and brave Kunoichi in all of Konoha.

No, scratch that, she was the bravest ninja in the _world_.

So, naturally, when she saw him use his Jutsu, she wasn't afraid. The shivers were just her imagination, or a sudden change in the summer temperature. The way her knees trembled and felt like jelly was just exhaustion kicking in from the four hours she had just spent in the midst of battle. The urge to run away was just coming… from…

NO! She was NOT AFRAID!!! And she certainly was not one to simply run away. She _never_ ran away. Ever.

The bloody kunai clutched in her hand slipped out of her grasp, hitting the dead grass with a light thud, as the glowing figure ten meters in front of her increased his chakra level again.

The sudden shockwave burst across the grass and through her entire body, flashing through her at insane speeds, stripping the rest of her pitifully drained chakra reserve with it. It felt like plunging into an icy, fast running current, but without the reassurance you would resurface with a chakra propelled kick upward. But, somehow, it could also be compared to throwing yourself into a raging, roaring orange wall of fire, without a flameproof suit. The two sensations meshed together brought an emotion she hadn't felt in a long, _long_ time.

Her bright red hair whipped around her face, tugging at the brand new Konoha headband displayed on her forehead, as the trees in the forest behind her groaned and creaked in the gale.

She brought a shaky arm up to shield her eyes from the hurricane force winds.

The figure disappeared again in a bright yellow flash, reappearing in the middle of the Iwagakure ninja's pathetic excuse for a defensive formation, seemingly flowing through the lines of battle-hardened soldiers, leaving naught but another heavy littering of bodies in its wake.

Cries of pain, angry shouts of vengeance and a fearful whistle of retreat sounded from across the clearing after the figure flashed back to the place he had been previously occupying, while the faintest whisper spread like wildfire across the blood-soaked plain:

_"Konoha no K__ī__roi Senk__ō…"_

She shut her eyes, defying the "weak water" as she loathingly called it to her friends. She was NOT about to cry in front of the man who was going to become Hokage. She was NOT going to show that man any weakness. She would be strong, just as she had every time she felt like this. This ridiculous, weak feeling that dared invade her. Disgusting her. Repulsing her.

As the opposing ninja broke ranks and began to flee back across the plains, he released the clinging yellow chakra, resulting in another, but less powerful, shockwave.

She opened her eyes, completely free of emotions, and stooped to retrieve her dropped kunai, softly congratulating herself for overcoming the tears.

She turned on her heel, rubber gripped soles squelching on the bloody blades of grass, and trudged back up the hill, sensing his eyes trained into the middle of her back.

With a sudden, childish rush of emotions, she sprinted the last few meters and tore as fast as her sore, shaking and chakra depleted body would take her into the dense forest.

Running was foolish, considering what he was now famous for, but that didn't stop her from flying through the trees faster than she had ever gone, heart pounding, muscles screaming, her breathing rapid and uneven.

A stray branch whipped across her chest, wiping off some of the dark, flaky blood that had accumulated on her ANBU uniform, and ripping the first layer of the thick, white mesh. She barely noticed, as something else had caught her attention, with a horrible jolt back to the sickening reality.

He was in pursuit.

She could feel the vibrations he was making through the trees every time she landed on a branch, swift, rapid movements that would probably be in interception range right about…now.

"Kushina!!"

Ignoring his call, she pushed herself faster, aware that it was only half a mile to the city gates now. Hopefully he would be low on chakra after his stunt, so she could get there first and…

"Wait, Kushina!"

_"Shit,"_ she muttered under her breath. Of _course_ he would catch up. More troubling, however, was that a hot, wet droplet of salty liquid had escaped from her face, flying behind her.

She heard his sharp intake of breath, and slight falter in insane speed.

That was all it took for her to fling herself out of the forest and over the hundred-foot wall protecting her foster home, slightly surprised she had managed a feat that _he_ could barely do himself.

Fear did a lot to people.

NO!

NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!

She was NOT AFRAID. NOT.

"Then why are you running?"

She hit the ground. Harder than she anticipated because the voice had come right beside her ear.

Although his voice had cracked slightly and was full of a sadness pleading her to stop, she regained her balance and tore off again, knowing full well that they had landed at the same moment.

Before she could run any farther, however, something lithe and warm caught her around the waist, effectively halting her progress with a skid of black grip shoes.

She struggled on instinct, throwing a poorly aimed kick behind her that missed by a mile, instead helping him use her reversed momentum to haul her over one shoulder and sprint in the opposite direction of her apartment.

Tensing and shaking with anger at this new humiliation, she squirmed again against the vice-grip across her lower back, clutching at his white ANBU vest with one hand, and rooting the other in his long blonde spikes.

The time frame it took to get to his apartment seemed forever to Kushina, who was struggling and kicking for all her worth as a Shinobi, but in reality, it was about three seconds, thanks to the Hiraishin. Using that particular Jutsu, however, made two more hot tears roll down her cheeks, both running onto his own blood-soaked vest, instantly turning them a light shade of red, before they fell off, hitting the rapidly moving pavement.

A seal and a muttered "Kai" later, they were inside his apartment when she found her voice, albeit cracking and hoarse, it was about time she said _something_.

"I was testing t-to see HoW fASt that… _Jutsu_ is," she croaked out, lamely, fighting the urge to dry sob, "See IF iT could… matcH my ins-sane sped-_speed_."

Simply saying, more like whispering, those words finally flushed all remaining strength out of her already over-worked body, and she fell limp on Minato's shoulder, hands untangling out of his yellow mop.

Still carrying her over her shoulder, he walked over to the small kitchen area, pulling open a drawer and ripping open two packets of instant ramen with his free hand.

"YoU can put me d-down noW, taiCHou," she managed, her mouth struggling to form the words. She really wished that her never-ending stamina would really be never-ending.

"You're really light, Kushina-chan, you should eat more," he said softly. She could feel his vocal cord vibrations through her midsection, which was right next to his neck. His voice wasn't bass, but it was deep and rich, making her muscles relax a fraction, which were still slightly tensed, even though she probably wouldn't be moving anymore for the next few days, what with the long battle and lovely sprint through the woods. Her quivering also subsided slightly, but the sharpness of the Jutsu was still fresh in her mind.

"I'm No sKInny bItch shinobi," she tried to hiss, the curse falling the easiest on her lips. She always loved having a vocabulary that would make Ibiki blush.

He ignored her, and placed the two ramens in water-filled bowls, before sliding them into the microwave sitting on the counter.

She remained silent, _still_ irritatingly draped over Minato's shoulder like some life-sized rag doll, and closed her eyes, feeling his weight shift when he opened the microwave door. He was, for someone who possessed a cold, unyielding power, a very warm person. His radiating temperature had penetrated the thick layer of ANBU issue uniform and seeped into her skin around her midriff.

All the girls back home in Whirlpool had envied her for her slight, petite figure, but sometimes when you were dealing with people who were around six four (Minato), while you were only five two, really made the situation irritating. On the upside, being light made missions and sprinting easier. Well, unless you were being chased by _him_.

Apparently satisfied with the cooking ramen, he adjusted his grip around her hips and padded across the apartment to the sofa. Carefully lifting her off, he held her bridal style for a second, before gently placing her down on said furniture article.

She wanted herself to sit up and begin running again, but her legs and body wouldn't respond, like a thousand tons of lead were weighing her down, preventing her from escaping again. He crouched down so their faces were level, and tried to meet her gaze. She wasn't going to comply. Seeing those endless, ice-cut orbs was the last thing she wanted to look at. Not now anyway. She knew that one glance from those eyes would make the floodgates open, and then all hell would break lose.

He sighed and made his way back to the microwave.

The apartment was silent except for the soft drone of the ramen-cooker, and the rush of water through overhead pipes, giving evidence that someone upstairs was taking a late night shower. She found herself strangely missing Minato's warmth, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move a muscle anymore. She had never been so tired in her life. Drifting off to sleep right now seemed so appealing, but she wouldn't give into that humiliation and sleep in his apartment of all things.

After saying nothing for, in Kushina's opinion, the agonizing three minutes it took to cook ramen, the microwave finally pinged, and, at almost the same moment, she heard Minato wrench the handle open.

His feet came back into her line of vision, and she saw him place one bowl on the coffee table in front of her and the other in front of himself.

Once again, she tried to sit up, but found her muscles decidedly refusing to move. What the hell was going on? She should be at least able to sit up, she wasn't that weak.

"Promise you won't run away and I'll take that seal off," he said casually, breaking his chopsticks.

Oh he was so going to get it. Her slight shaking dissipated in a fresh wave of humiliation. He had made the ramen as a _bribe_, and in her mind, that just wasn't fair at all. And to top it off, he had put a suppressor seal on her.

_"Probably when he said I was __too__ skinny,"_ she mentally snorted at herself.

And she called herself an ANBU.

She mumbled a "fine" and he happily made a hand sign, making her feel a warm tingle on her stomach.

_"That little sneak. And I thought it was just him being warm."_

She groaned and pushed herself up into a sitting position, still not meeting his eyes. She grabbed the ramen cup and broke her chopsticks, briefly wondering how often she had gotten into extremely awkward situations like this. What would happen once they finished? A casual see you later and thanks for the ramen? Or how about, you scare the crap out of me are you even human?

I think not.

She exhaled a breath she didn't remember holding, and plucked at a piece of Naruto in her cup. She had always liked the topping. The first time she had ever met Minato had to do with Ichiraku's and a large topping of Naruto. She had been eating her ramen and Naruto when he had come in and sat a few stools away. The only reason she had noticed him at all was his hair, the spiky yellow mess that stuck out every which angle, but at the same time neatly framing his face. She remembered snorting in her ramen bowl thinking: _"Kami help any child of mine who gets freaky hair like that."_ He had apparently heard her snort because he turned his head and looked at her.

That was the first time she had seen his eyes.

They weren't the huge, pansy eyes that those animae boys in yaoi fics had, god no, they were, in a way, indescribable. They were blue and battle-hardened. A little too experienced in the Shinobi ways in her opinion. At the time they had only been what… sixteen?

Anyway, she remembered him asking her what her problem was, and she answered in her tomboy voice that he looked like someone had smashed a pineapple on his head. He didn't take offense, but instead told her that her hair looked like someone had chucked her into a bucket of red house paint. In retaliation she flicked a piece of Naruto at his face, delighting in how it hit his face with a small smacking noise.

After that, he had gotten a little irritated and she sprinted out of the ramen stand like there was no tomorrow. Ironically, on the same day, she had been placed in his ANBU squad permanently.

Bringing herself back to reality and the ramen in Minato's apartment, she couldn't help but snorting again.

"What," stated Minato, still trying to meet her gaze.

"You look like someone just smashed a pineapple on your head," she retaliated, thankful that her normal voice was back. She still wouldn't look at him.

He must have remembered the Ichiraku incident as he replied in an amused voice, "And you look like someone chucked you into a can of red house paint."

She laughed softly at the hilarity of it all. That really was a great ice-breaker. The tension in the atmosphere dissipated instantaneously.

She decided to say something about it first before her voice failed her.

"Err… sorry about... back there… I just kinda freaked, y'know?"

"Well after that one ninja had surprised you of all people, I figured it was necessary to-"

"Clean up the situation? Thanks I guess, but I coulda taken him. That stupid Water Jutsu really pissed me off," she cut in before he said anything else. "Err… do me a favor?"

"Mmm?"

"Don't EVER pick me up like that again."

They both laughed together.

"Okay, I promise."

They sat in silence for the next few minutes, both slurping ramen and deep in their own thoughts.

Noticing that there was no more ramen in her bowl, Kushina cleared her throat and looked up, immediately regretting it as her eyes met his.

They were watering.

Those beautiful, endlessly blue eyes permeated her soul with the blunt dagger of sadness, washing all happiness out of her being.

Minato's eyes were crying.

Shocked, Kushina attempted to say something, _anything_, but her words spluttered out in a mess of nonsense, her eyes still locked with his.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, hoarsely, "I just overreacted to that Water Jutsu hitting you dead on, it felt like I was just powerless, seeing you spin around in that vortex. I'm really sorry."

She broke his captivating gaze with all the effort she could muster and said, "No, I'm sorry. I should've seen it coming. I was okay, by the way, I _did_ grow up in Uzu no Kuni."

She saw him wipe his eyes with the palm of his gloved hand out of the corner of her eyes, but seeing this small gesture of apology and remorse that she really didn't deserve threw her emotional control over a cliff.

Her own salty tears glided soundlessly down her cheeks. She was angry with herself for showing such girlish weakness, but it was unstoppable. Seeing Minato's sadness had shattered her resolve into a thousand pieces.

She suddenly felt a warm hand grasp her own, and she looked back up and met Minato's gaze again.

They were both crying now, droplets coming in silent streams.

She squeezed his hand.

He squeezed back.

She would not break his gaze. They both needed this, this, casual contact. Somewhere deep down, they both needed to release a flood of build-up.

They both had grown up with no parents, no history, no love, no anything. She had grown up in the poverty-stricken Uzu no Kuni and he had grown up in Konoha without a future, both of their parents had died in the Second Great Shinobi War, leaving them to defend for themselves.

Looking back on it, they both wore masks that blocked the outside world. She had her annoying, obnoxious tomboy front, and he had his happy 'friends with everyone' aura, but inside they were both just little kids deprived of love.

Her village wasn't known for having caring hearts, all they cared about was who the strongest shinobi was, not really paying attention to an insignificant girl unless she pulled the biggest pranks.

His village was caught up in a war at the time, so what did it matter if a little orphaned Namikaze was left to fend for himself?

They both strived to be noticed, Minato with his genius and amazing ability with ninjutsu, and her with her pranks and attention-seeking tricks.

After a few minutes more, the tears ceased on both sides, leaving them in-

"Okay, this is awwwwkwaardddd…"

They both laughed, and laughed, and once it started, it was rather hard to stop. They laughed, snorted, and roared with laughter, and when it seemed like stopping, one of them started again, drawing in the other, into raging fits of laughter.

Minato recovered first, "Thanks, Kushina-chan, I needed that."

They smiled, breaking contact with the other's hand, and wiped away the other tears that had leaked out in their laughing fit.

"Y'know something? I think this is the weirdest day of my life. First, I sprint faster than I've ever gone before, and then I find myself eating ramen in here, and THEN to top it all off, we both go and show signs of bipolarity!"

They laughed again.

"But it's worth it."

The words had slipped from her mouth before she could stop them, but she meant every single phonetic syllable.

Minato cocked his head. "What's that mean, Kushina-chan?"

"Well… y'know… finally letting it all out. Crying and then laughing uncontrollably. In a way, it felt… good. It feels nice to laugh with someone, to not be… alone. Also, DON'T use 'chan'. I don't know how many times I've told you in the seven years I've known you, just call me Kushina."

"Okay, Kushina-chan," replied Minato, completely serious.

Her eyebrow twitched.

"What did I just say, Minato-_kun_?" she asked dangerously.

"You said that finally letting it all out felt good, and that it was nice to not be alone," Minato said, still completely serious, "to me that means that you think you're alone."

She didn't say anything. She really, _really_ hoped that the dialogue wouldn't escalate into some stupid fluffy scene from an animae fanfic, but that wouldn't happen… right? Wrong.

"You're never alone. That's a promise of a lifetime."

They were still staring into each other's eyes. Her heart rate accelerated.

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After that particular incident, Uzumaki Kushina would always remember two things about Namikaze Minato:

First, she would remember exactly why his nickname was _Konoha no Kīroi Senkō_. His deadly accurate _Hirashin no __Jutsu_ (Flying Thunder God Technique) had given him this name in regards to the byproduct yellow chakra, and his yellow pineapple doo.

Second, she would remember exactly how good of a kisser said Namikaze was, amongst... other things.

Looking back on it, she really thought that the whole 'stealing her to his apartment and making her some ramen' was one _HELL_ of a pick-up line.

Somehow, she could blame it all on a sprint through the woods and some Naruto Ramen.

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**Author's Notes:**

Teehee… _Happy Birthday Minato_! I know it's a day late, and that you _Sealate Warpein_ fans are going to kill me for working on this instead of little Naru-chan's predicament, but it was so worth it. I was going to make the ending some sappy lovey-dovey thing, but _I JUST COULD'NT DO IT_!!! You might also notice that I stole the 'fraidy of the Hirashin' thing from my other story, but Naruto isn't the only one afraid of it! XD

Anyways, go read _Sealate Warpein_, R&R and eat a pickle.

Jaa ne!


End file.
